I am not an advocate of after market products for carseats that may potentially interfere with the safety of the seat, but I'm thinking there has to be something out there that is safe and fits my needs. I have a toddler and 4 year old who both are wonderful car travelers. They often sleep in their carseats. Problem is their heads fall forward and lean to the side when they sleep which cannot be comfortable. I know how terrible it is when this happens to me in a car or plane. Can anyone recommend a travel pillow designed for use in a car seat that works for this age children? I would think they all push the child's head and neck forward. Thanks, Moms, for your help!
I don't think it bothers them nearly as much as it does us! But you are a good mama for worrying about it. :-)
Our 2 boys are also wonderful car travelers. Their seats are next to each other, and the are best buddies, so they completely keep each other entertained when they are awake and comfortable when they fall asleep. When on trips, they each bring their bed pillows and stack them on the space in between them. Then they each lean to the side, heads side by side on the pillows. They are very comfortable, and it is very sweet. When our youngest was a toddler and not able to stretch over far enough to reach the pillows, our older son (who was in a booster seat) would put the pillows closer to his brother and make sure his head was propped up. But it was definitely easier once the boys got a little older...
You can pick up pillows that are made for car sits at wal-mart, toys-r-us, and many other stores.
We bought the pillow pet for my daughter. Works great and she loves it!
Little kids have more muscle movement and bendy joints, they don't get injured of stiff from sitting like this like adults do. This is the age group that chews on their toes and can fall flat on their faces and jump up without even blinking at falling that hard.... kwim? If he doesn't wake up its not hurting him. Make sure the car seat is installed properly, harness on both seats tight and secure, chest clip up on the chest properly, and if their heads fall forward don't stress, they will wake up and readjust if they are uncomfortable.
Good for you for being cautious about aftermarket products. I'd try something that doesn't interfere with the harness straps at all. Maybe you could do what folks do with infant seats - roll up a receiving blanket and place it between your child's head and the side of the car seat? Of course, I'm not sure how you'd keep it in place if your kids want to just fidget with the blanket ;-)
Kid's muscles and joints are very flexible. It looks like it would hurt...but I don't think it really does. Mine never complained about a stiff neck at that age...
I agree with the person who said get a U shaped neck pillow and use it backwards. I also saw this one (http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId...) where a designer finally got it right - they made the part that goes behind the head small and squishy so it doesn't push the neck & head forward, but it thick on the sides for them to rest their heads against.
We solved this problem with my son by getting one of the U shaped travel pillows but having him use it backwards. worked great!
